It's Easier not to Think
by The Ones Who Waited
Summary: It was easier this way. This way, with neither of them quite caring, both of them high out of their minds, Daryl could convince himself that he wasn't hurting anyone. Or that he wasn't really doing this. Or that it didn't count. Or something like that.
1. Initiation

**It's Easier Not to Think**

**So I'm already a HUGE Daryl/Glenn shipper, even with the lack of proof we've been shown (isn't that a shipper's life, though?). And there's not enough fic in the world for them, so here's my shot.**

**I feel that Daryl would have trouble accepting his attraction to another man, while Glenn would most likely be OK with it (that's what college is for!), so he would have to convince himself that it was just a one-time thing, or something.**

**Um, the timeline is... strange. It kind of skips around, from pre-season to the CDC to season 2. So pretend you don't care about timeline.**

***There is some dubious consent on Glen's part throughout the story, as in, almost non-con.***

Chapter I. _Initiation_

* * *

><p>It was easier this way. This way, with neither of them quite caring, both of them high out of their minds, Daryl could convince himself that he wasn't hurting anyone. Or that he wasn't really doing this. Or that it didn't count. Or something like that.<p>

Analytical introspection wasn't really Daryl's strong suit.

It could have been, maybe, if things had been different. If he hadn't had to drop out of school, if he didn't have to hide his books whenever his brother came around. Sure, Merle was great, but he didn't look too kindly on those who valued "book learnin'". And Daryl wanted Merle to think he was the best, he wanted Merle to like him. Because Merle was his big brother, and who doesn't idolize their big brother?

But Merle was gone now, and Daryl was lost. He was angry for the longest time, hell, he was still angry, but now he didn't have anywhere to aim that anger. He had long ago forgiven T-Dog for being clumsy, and they had all gone with him to retrieve Merle. That had to count for something.

But that put Daryl in the awkward position of being angry without anything to be angry _at._ He wished he had some books to bury himself in, someone to yell at or some walker to kill. Lacking that, he withdrew into himself and cleaned his weapons. It was repetitive and soothing.

But that stupid Asian, that dumb-ass Glenn, had decided to make it his mission to cheer Daryl up. Whenever he saw Daryl cleaning his weapons, he plopped down next to him and cleaned his own weapons. Whenever Daryl went out to scout, Glenn went with him. That boy was a burr, but Daryl sure as hell wasn't about to let him under his skin.

But he didn't know how to stop it. Already, he was becoming used to Glenn's presence on the scouting trips and the small grunts of satisfaction he made when a weapon was cleaned. When he answered with a grunt of his own and they shared a smile, Daryl quickly turned it into a smirk and turned away.

That's when he _knew_ this had to stop. He couldn't get comfortable, least of all now, least of all with Glenn.

"I'm going on a scouting trip." Daryl told Dale the next day.

Dale looked up. "It's barely even dawn yet," he stated.

"I know," Daryl had purposefully chosen a time when hardly anyone would be awake. "Best time to track those motherfuckers."

"Aren't you going to wait for Glenn?" Dale called, but Daryl walked on, pretending he hadn't heard.

He came back later that evening, richer by two rabbits. He dropped them off at Rick's feet and ignored the injured look Glenn gave him. He stalked off to his tent, but Glenn hopped up and followed him.

"Why'd you leave so early?" Glenn asked. When he received no response, he tried again. "Did you find anything out?" He started at Daryl for a moment, then tried one last time. "You shouldn't need to go again for a while, now, though, right?"

"For Christ sakes!" Daryl hissed, getting closer to Glenn (which, he belatedly realized, was a mistake), "Will you leave me alone? I got better things to do than babysit a chinaman like you, all right?" Glenn was silent, then turned and walked back to the campfire.

Daryl wasn't angry anymore, not after that. Instead, he was anxious, a little guilty. He went back to cleaning his weapons by himself, spending more and more time on his hunting trips. Eventually, Glenn seemed to forgive him.

At least, they could have conversations now, sit next to each other without glaring daggers.

Then Jim got bitten, and they undertook a crazy-ass journey to the CDC. Jim got left on the way, but the others made it.

"Who'd of thought?" Daryl mused, once they were inside. "We actually made it."

Glenn, hearing him, laughed. "Yeah, man, I thought we were gonna die out there!" Looking at Glenn's smile, realizing how much he had missed it, Daryl felt his heart constrict.

And he had his plan.


	2. Implementation

Chapter II. _Implementation_

**I had to break this fic up into chapter, cause I have at least two more incidents to tell, and I thought that would be to much text in one page. **

**(Apologies if I don't have the exact show dialogue written.)**

* * *

><p>"Booyah!" Daryl crowed, acting more drunk than he was. Everyone at the table was laughing and having a good time, but, most importantly, <em>drinking.<em> Except Glenn.

"Hey, Glenn, come one. Have a drink." Daryl said, a little worried. His plan required that Glenn be off-his-ass drunk, and how would that happen if he wasn't drinking?

"Well, I don't drink." Glenn admitted shamefacedly, to the laughter of the other. Daryl was silent, more than a little crushed. There went his plan.

But he got some unexpected back-up from Rick. "Aw, come on Glenn, a little won't hurt," The defacto leader coaxed. Glenn, smiled, but complied.

"Aw yeah, drink up!" Daryl yelled, "I want to see those little cheeks get red!"

After everybody had taken their showers and gone to bed, Daryl took his chance. He had planned to only play drunk, but his nerves had gotten the better of him and he drank more than he intended. But still, all that liquid courage inside him meant he wouldn't wuss out at the last minute.

He stumbled down the hall and knocked on the door he hoped was Glenn's. "Hey, hey, you in there?" He called as quietly as he could, thinking he should have planned this out a little better.

But he didn't have to wait long. Glenn opened the door, still obviously drunk. "Daryl?" He asked, his voice too loud. "What're you doing here?"

"Shh!" Daryl hushed him, putting his hand over his mouth and hustled him into Glenn's room. For some reason, Glenn thought that was hilarious, and burst out into laughter. "Shut up!" Daryl said, panicked.

Glenn continued to laugh. "It's just... just..." but he couldn't continue.

Daryl sighed. Looked like he was going to have to make the first move here. "I was an idiot." He said over the sound of the younger man's laughter. "I should never have sent you away, or pushed you away, or whatever I did. It's just..." Daryl took a breath. He couldn't stop now. "I really like you. But I'm not a fag. But I still like you, yeah? So I was scared and tried to stop my feelings, but obviously that didn't work, and-" he stopped. It was silent. Glenn had stopped laughing. "What?" Daryl asked, panicked.

Solemn (but not sober, Daryl prayed), Glenn looked up at him. "You see," he said, breathless, pressing up against the other man, "I was laughing because I've wanted you to touch me for so long, and when you did, I thought it was because you wanted to beat the shit out of me!" Daryl stared at him, shocked. He wanted to ask where Glenn had gotten that impression, but realized he didn't need to. Daryl didn't exactly portray himself as a teddy bear.

"And you shouldn't worry so much about being gay, you know?' Glenn continued to mumble, now leaning his head against Daryl's chest. "Cause sexuality is fluid, so that means you don't have to be attracted to just one gender, and you're not necessarily gay if you-" Tired of waiting, Daryl leaned down and shut the Asian up with what seemed the best way: a kiss.

Glenn giggled (God, that sound turned Daryl on), trying to act coy. He was too drunk to do much, however. Daryl, also too drunk to care, laughed right with him and leaned down to shut him up again.

* * *

><p>Daryl left early the next morning, fighting a raging hangover and hoping Glenn would be out for at least another couple of hours.<p> 


	3. Internal

Chapter III. _Internal_

**All right! This is probably the last chapter (as I'm running out of words that start with "i" and match the theme of the story).**

**The tone's a little different cause Daryl's kind of panicked, but it'll go back to normal. Ish. **

**No happy ending, as per usual to me, but a slight glimmer of chance. As long as there's drugs...**

* * *

><p>Daryl wasn't gay. He wasn't a faggot, a guy who fucked other guys cause he liked it. He liked women, he did, it was just... his options were limited right now, weren't they?<p>

Anyways, it wasn't like Glenn was really a _man._ Or, well, he was a man (as Daryl had seen last night), but he looked a little more like a girl. Daryl was drunk last night, and you can't be responsible for what you do when you're drunk, right?

But that was Daryl's plan. To get Glenn drunk so he would be vulnerable and too hungover to remember anything the next day. And it had worked, in that respect.

Glenn had come to breakfast, hungover and miserable. Daryl didn't say anything to him, and Glenn didn't say anything to him, either.

But Daryl couldn't get the question out of his mind: If he had _chosen_ to get Glenn drunk and take advantage of him, didn't that mean Daryl _wanted_ to have sex with Glenn?

But Daryl wasn't gay. So that couldn't be it.

But then why did he feel disappointed when he realized Glenn wouldn't remember how hard Daryl had rocked his world?

Daryl shook his head. He had to stop thinking like this! He wasn't gay, and that was that. Sure, he liked Glenn, but that was a one time thing. Obviously. It's not like it was going to happen again.

(But Daryl sometimes thought he wanted it to happen again...)

* * *

><p>After the CDC incident, he and Glenn had gotten back on friendlier terms. Which meant that Glenn transformed into a burr again, hanging around Daryl. They were cleaning their weapons. Glenn, somehow, had lost most of his, and only had a machete to clean.<p>

Daryl, in the middle of cleaning his third knife, took pity on the young man, who was simply sitting there. He tossed him his crossbow. "Here, think you can handle cleaning this?"

Glenn smirked. "Probably better than you."

Daryl scoffed. "Make sure you're careful with my baby, kay?" Glenn nodded and attempted to figure out how to even start.

Daryl lost himself in the soothing motion of sharpening his blade, stopping his brain. He jolted back to reality when he heard a soft "ow!"

He jerked his head up. "What happened?" He demanded, looking around. Glenn looked up, sheepish.

"It's nothing. I just sliced myself on an arrowhead. Or the string. Or something." He muttered, embarrassed. Daryl looked down at Glenn's hand, seeing the blood welling up.

"You idiot! Lemme see that!" He snarled, grabbing Glenn's hand. He ignored the way his stomach fluttered (he was basically holding Glenn's hand!) and examined the cut. "It's not that bad." He said, washing it off with some water.

Still on autopilot, he lifted Glenn's hand up to his mouth and brushed a kiss along the cut, then started to bandage it up. He froze, though, realizing what he had done.

Glenn's eyes were huge circles of shock. Daryl was frozen, unsure. "My mom used to do that..." He muttered gruffly, hoping Glenn would take that as an explanation.

"Mine too." Glenn answered.

They were both lying.

And Daryl knew that he had to get Glenn by himself again.

Luckily, T-Dawg got blood poisoning, and Daryl got a chance to bust out his brother's drug stash. He tossed the pain killers to Glenn, then the antibiotics to Dale.

He caught up with Glenn that night near his tent. "How's your hand?" He asked.

Glenn looked down. "Fine."

"You should take some of those pain killers, you know. It can be a bitch to sleep on a fresh cut." Daryl told Glenn, glaring at him.

The younger man glared back, but relented. "How many should I take?" He asked, uncertain.

Daryl smiled. This was it.

He gave Glenn twice the amount needed, not enough to knock him out, but enough to get him high as tits. Daryl took the same amount, then waited for the effects to kick in.

"Daryl!" Glenn said excitedly upon catching sight of the man. "You!" Daryl waited, wondering what Glenn was going to say next. "Man, this painkillers are the best! I can't even feel the cut!"

Daryl laughed. "Yeah, painkillers are like that, Glenn." Geez, when Glenn was acting like this and Daryl was _reacting _like this, it sure was hard to remember he wasn't gay.

Glenn giggled. "I like it when you use my name..." He said. Daryl blinked. That seemed like a weird thing to say... did Glenn remember what had happened last time? Daryl shook his head, once, hard. No. No way. And even if he did, these painkillers were _strong._ Glenn would definitely not remember this incident, at least.

But whatever. Daryl wasn't here to fool around (well, except that he was), and from the way Glenn was wrapping his body around Daryl's, he wasn't either. Looking into the shorter man's eyes, Daryl picked up his injured hand and kissed it on the bandage. Still keeping eye contact, he kissed his way up Glenn's arm to his shoulder, then his neck, and then his face.

It was easier this way. This way, with neither of them quite caring, both of them high out of their minds, Daryl could convince himself that he wasn't hurting anyone. Or that he wasn't really doing this. Or that it didn't count. Or something like that.

* * *

><p>Once again, Daryl left before Glenn woke up. This time, there was no chance of a hangover, but fuck, <em>he<em> could hardly remember what they did in there. Glenn was a lightweight, no way would he be able to resist the drugs.

He grabbed his crossbow and went off on a scouting trip, needing time to think.

He wasn't a fool, he saw the way Glenn and the others looked at him. They thought he was just some redneck hillbilly, the guy who existed to solely to save their necks if they happened to be attacked. No way would Glenn ever want to touch Daryl if he were in possession of his own facilities, certainly not in that way.

No, this was easiest. This way, Daryl could distract himself and Glenn could have some fun. This way, no one had to know. And, really (Daryl wasn't fooling himself), this was the only way he would even stand a chance with Glenn.

He needed more drugs.


	4. Incubus

Chapter IV. _Incubus_

**Thank you, ishalove, Em and MyOwnXTigerEyes, for the encouragement (and the chapter title)! Looks like this story doesn't end in 3 chapters.**

**Who knew incubus had so many definitions/fit in with the theme of this story so well?**

**There's a little less guilty sex in here and more action (sorry?), but hopefully you enjoy it! Also, yes, I kind of skimped on the mystery/looking for the missing person aspect and it's long and it ends on a kind of cliff hanger, but suck it up.**

**And astute readers might have noticed that there was a chapter up, but I realized it sucked and so edited it.**

* * *

><p>This was a nightmare. It had to be. There was no other way for Daryl to accept it.<p>

How else could it be possible that Glenn had been kidnapped, again?

* * *

><p>The day after he and Glenn... (even in his mind, Daryl hesitated,) that day after he had given Glenn the painkillers, he was a little worried. Glenn seemed to have a high tolerance for drugs. But he was gone on a scouting mission when Glenn woke up, and nobody tired to kill him when he came back, so he assumed that the other man didn't remember a thing.<p>

(Again, there was that strange tinge of regret when Daryl considered that fact...)

He was skinning a rabbit when Glenn walked up to him. Other than shifting his position, Daryl ignored him. They sat for a while in silence. Finally, Glenn said "Hey, thanks for the painkillers. I slept like a baby." There was a pause, then Glenn continued, "As if that were an accurate metaphor." He looked at Daryl from the corner of his eye until the other man cracked a smile.

"Yeah, babies can be annoying." He muttered, feeling as though Glenn was waiting for him to say something.

Glenn smiled distantly, then transformed it into a frown (somehow. It happened to gradually for Daryl to even notice at first). "You went on another scouting trip." He stated flatly. "Without me. Again."

Daryl blinked. "You were sleeping, Chinaman. Besides, I work better alone. What was I supposed to do, wake you up so you could blunder along and scare off all the game in a mile?" He wasn't trying to be mean, not really (well, except for the racist statements. Daryl had to act as though he didn't like Glenn _that_ much). There was a grain of truth in that statement: Glenn sucked at walking unobtrusively. But if he tried to let him down easily, well, that would give the wrong impression. Daryl wasn't softening for anyone.

Glenn glared at him "You could try to teach me about surviving in the woods instead of just being an asshole!" He hissed.

Daryl was taken aback. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down, chink! Why would I?" Why was Glenn so angry? Wan't he smart enough to know that he'd lose any argument he got into with a Dixon? "Why do you even want to come with me, anyway?"

Daryl's blood began to boil, as Glenn stood up and leaned down into his face. "I have a name, _Daryl_, and I know you know it." He ignored the question and stalked off, leaving Daryl on the car hood, stunned. There was no way for Glenn to remember last night! Those were prescription level painkillers!

The rest of the day was spent as it normally was: scavenge, eat a pitiful amount, walker scare, scavenge. Repeat as necessary. But, right around dinner time, Shane looked around. "Where's Glenn?" He asked. Everyone looked at Daryl.

"How'm I supposed to know?" He muttered. "I got better things to do than watch him." But it was strange. After their fight, he hadn't seen the other man. He's assumed Glenn was avoiding him, but if no one else had seen him...

"I might have seen him walking into the woods..." Carol volunteered quietly. Everyone tensed. Then they exploded.

"What?"

"Why would he do that?"

"Why didn't you tell anyone earlier?"

"The _woods?"_

Daryl froze. The woods? Even Glenn wasn't that stupid.

"It's already almost 6," Rick said, looking at the sky. "It'll be dark soon. Do we have time to track him?" He asked, turning to Daryl.

Daryl didn't hesitate. If Glenn was out there... "There haven't been many walkers on my scouting trips, it should be OK for a little while even after it gets dark."

The light was fading by the time Daryl picked up some tracks. "I have something!" He whispered. "See here? Glenn's tracks are met by about three others, and then they ran." His pronouncement was followed by silence.

Then, "He was kidnapped?" Carol asked. "Like Sophia?"

There was an uncomfortable silence. Carol's daughter had been missing for about a week, and no one wanted to tell the woman that Sophia was dead or, more likely, a walker by now. Lori walked over and put her arm around Carol. "Yeah, maybe." She said reassuringly.

"It's getting pretty dark out, Daryl, how about we split up?" Rick asked. When Daryl nodded, he turned and said, "Kay, Daryl, Shane, and I will continue to search, and you three go join Dale and T-Dawg, let them know what's up." After a round of 'good-bye's' and 'good luck's', the women left.

Daryl repositioned his crossbow and started to walk, but Shane grabbed his arm. "Is there any chance of finding him alive?" He asked, intense. "We don't want this to turn into another thing like Sophia."

Daryl glared right back. "Well, considering we have actual proof that he was kidnapped, yeah, I think we got a chance." He didn't say: _and we'd keep searching for him, cause he's more important than some little girl._

As Rick walked back from embracing his wife, Shane muttered, "You're the boss," and let go of Daryl.

"Yeah, I am." Daryl responded. Rick looked at him, but made no comment.

They walked for about an hour, long enough for Rick to start glancing up at the sky and around the woods. "I think we should head back." He said, finally. "We can pick this up tomorrow."

Daryl stared deeper into the woods, knowing that Rick made sense. He didn't want to give up, but he knew he'd be no use to Glenn if he were dead. He sighed. "Yeah, let's go."


	5. Imperfect

Chapter V. _Imperfect_

**If anyone has a better word for the title, that would be great. This one only slightly fits, but it'll do.**

* * *

><p>This was the second day Glenn was missing. Two days he'd been gone, and there was no further sign of him.<p>

Rick called a meeting. "Daryl, are you sure those tracks indicate Glenn was kidnapped? Cause, well, I don't think we should stay in the position any longer than we have to, and if we can't find him soon..."

Daryl couldn't believe it. "You mean if we can't find him, we're just gonna leave?" He asked in disbelief. Everyone dropped their eyes in the silence. "No. No way. We stay here for more than a week to convince some woman that her little girl isn't dead even though we all know the truth, but when we know Glenn is alive, we leave him after two days? Bullshit."

Again, there was silence. Finally, Shane mumbled, "Well, if we know he's with people, at least he's slightly safe..."

"Bullshit!" Daryl yelled again, interrupting him. He walked right up to Shane. "You think he's safe _because_ someone kidnapped him? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! We don't know why they kidnapped him, or what they're doing, or anything. They could be torturing him for all we know!"

After that, the group dispersed, no one willing to argue with Daryl. "I'll take first watch," he let them know as they walked back to their tents. "Idiots." He muttered.

They would keep searching for Glenn until they found him, Daryl would make sure of that. It was his duty to find Glenn because... well, it was his fault Glenn was gone. He had caused the argument that made Glenn storm away, he had to bear the guilt of those actions. But it had been two days...

Still. Still, just because they hadn't found him yet didn't mean they would never find him. They _would_ find Glenn, then Daryl would have some alone time with those sick freaks who kidnapped him.

* * *

><p>The next day, only Daryl, Shane, and Rick went out to search. The others stayed behind to finish picking the cars clean and help Dale with the RV repairs. Picking up the tracks where they left off, the three men hunted in silence. Daryl heard rustling in the woods and held up his hand, signaling the others to stop.<p>

The other two men swung into defensive position behind him as Daryl swung his crossbow up and pointed it in the direction of the sound. They waited for what seemed an eternity, then...

"Don't shoot!" Glenn yelled, sprinting out of the woods.

"Jesus!" Daryl reacted, pulling up his crossbow and making the arrow go high. "You have a death wish?"

"No time... go! They were attacked by a squad of geeks- probably followed me-" Glenn gasped, pulling on Daryl's arm. Daryl growled, grabbed his arrow, and booked it.

They made it back to camp, exhausted and panting. Daryl took stock and froze. Glenn was covered in blood. Rick motioned the others back and calmly asked him, "What happened back there?" doing a good job of pretending not to be too concerned.

Glenn was still bent over, hands on his knees, panting. "Oh, yeah, sure." He said. "I went into the woods cause..." he hesitated, glanced at Daryl, then continued. "Cause I had to pee. I started walking back when I realized I didn't have my machete, so I went back to search for it. I was pretty intent on finding it, so I didn't notice that I had stumbled in on a group of guys. I-"

Carol interrupted him. "Did you see Sophia?"

Glenn looked at her, his face indecipherable. "No." He paused, then continued. "Um, they were pretty shocked, I guess, and then they got all paranoid. They were asking me if I was a spy, or if I was trying to steal from them. I tried to explain that I wasn't, I was just lost, but they wouldn't let me leave. Eventually, they took me with them when they left."

He paused again and looked up at the others, lingering on Daryl. "I'm not going to lie, I was scared. I was really hoping you guys would come after me." He took a breath and went on. "So, it was getting dark out and they decided to stop. I think they were going to tie me up like they did the other nights, but they were surprised by a whole lot of geeks. They just... came out of nowhere. It was chaos. I ran."

The group was silent. "So where's the blood from, Glenn?" Rick asked calmly.

"Are you bit?" Daryl butt in, tired of Rick's slow approach. If Glenn was bit, that demanded a reaction other than calm, dammit.

Glenn panicked. "No?" He exclaimed, patting his body down. "I don't think so! I ran so fast they didn't touch me."

At those magic words, everyone relaxed. The group surrounded him, the women hugging him and the men patting him on the back. Then Rick said, "Well, I'm sure glad you're safe, Glenn. But it's late and we're all beat, so we should get to bed. We'll move out tomorrow."

Carol sobbed quietly and Lori rushed over to comfort her. Everyone went to their tents while Daryl took first watch again. Glenn walked up to him. "I'm too wired to sleep, man, I got first watch."

Daryl laughed. "You can't even protect yourself let alone the whole camp." They were silent, then Daryl sighed. Running his hand over his face, he said "You scared the shit out of me, running into us like that."

Glenn smiled. "Well, nice to know you're not some futuristic robot."

Daryl gave him a blank stare.

"You know, cause you always save our asses and you don't stop, but if you can feel fear-?" Glenn asked hopefully, but Daryl still didn't get it. Glenn sighed and trailed off.

"Well, nice to know you're OK." Daryl scowled and turned away.

"Daryl?" Glenn said softly. Daryl turned back. "Promise me something."

"What?" Daryl asked, tired.

"If I'm bitten-" Glenn started, but Daryl cut him off.

"Not gonna happen, not unless you repeat this stupid stunt."

Glenn glared at him, so Daryl shut up. "If I _am_ bitten, I want you to end it. Not Rick, not Shane, you. OK?" His eyes were intense, his stance stubborn.

Daryl considered it. Would he be able to shoot this kid? "Like I said, not gonna happen. But sure. If that's what you want."

Glenn nodded, then yawned. "Actually, now that I've sat down, I'm pretty tired. Are you sure you got this?" He asked, barely able to keep his eyes open.

Daryl nodded. "Make sure you're up early tomorrow, OK? Looks like you need some survival lessons more than I thought." Glenn turned around and laughed, his smile making Daryl's guilt increase, somehow. If something had happened to Glenn-

"One more thing," Daryl said, studying the other man. Glenn had dried blood on his face and looked _old. _Old and tired and scared. "Same goes for me."

Glenn looked confused. "What?" He asked.

Daryl sighed. "And they think _I'm_ the stupid one." He muttered. He looked into Glenn's eyes. "You can shoot me in the face if I'm bit," he clarified.

Glenn stared at him, quiet. "You know, Daryl-" He started, but closed his mouth. Instead of finishing his sentence, he walked over to Daryl and hugged him.

"What are you doing?" Daryl demanded, stiff.

"I noticed you didn't hug me when the others did, and I figured you didn't want anyone to see how much of a teddy bear you really are," Glenn pulled away and grinned cheekily. Daryl aimed a smack at his head, but Glenn dodged it, laughing.

Daryl walked the perimeter, shaking his head. That kid. He couldn't even walk through the woods without being kidnapped and he thought Daryl wanted _hugs_, and Daryl was trusting him to shoot him in the face. What was the world coming to?

What was it coming to, that Daryl had a crush on an incompetent guy, some guy who probably paid more for college than Daryl did for his house? That Daryl was opening up, forming attachments, going against everything Merle taught him?

Whatever was going on, whatever the world was turning into, Daryl wasn't quite sure he liked it.


	6. Interlude

Chapter VI. _Interlude_

**A different kind of chapter, just a small piece on Glenn's thoughts so far. It's a little more frantic, but hopefully it's a different enough writing style so that you can tell it's not Daryl focused.**

He was tired. Tired of running, of being anxious, of not sleeping, of all of it. Sometimes, he just wanted to be _alone,_ away from it all.

But, or course, it was _dangerous_ out there, especially for someone as small as him. Or that's what everyone thought. They never said it, of course not, they wouldn't, but they all thought it. Whenever he tried to take a walk and clear his head, Rick would distract him with some task, or Shane would jump up and join him.

And Glenn had no problem with them as people, he didn't, he just wanted some space. "I think I can handle going to the bathroom, Shane." He says one day when the police officer tries to intercept him on a bathroom break.

Shane looks shifty. "Well, yeah, I don't doubt that. It's just... you know, after what happened in the woods the last time, we thought it'd be better if there was someone near you all the time," he mutters. Glenn stares at him, stony. Shane coughs. "But yeah, I'll just wait here."

Glenn finishes his business and walks back into camp, pretending not to notice when Shane skulks away. He sighs as he sits down around the campfire. Everyone here thought he was such a _baby,_ and it made Glenn angry. He was a grown man, he had been in Atlanta, he'd faced the attacks the geeks made-! And so what if he had been kidnapped, twice? It was just bad luck. And now he was watched more closely than Carl or Sophia ever was.

Except by the person he wanted to be watched by. And, God, that sounded so creepy and weird and fucking _wrong,_ but it was the end of the world and Glenn didn't think it mattered anymore. Who cared if he wanted to get with a guy, even if that guy was a redneck and racist and annoying and rude? _Who cared?_

Well, Daryl did, apparently. It didn't escape Glenn that Daryl's eyes would linger, and he seemed to be a little more protective of him than anyone else, and there were those _gaps_ in his memory that Glenn didn't mind because Daryl was always shy and on a hunting trip when they ended and Glenn wasn't _stupid_, he knew something was going on. But he didn't care. He didn't see anything wrong with it, and he wished that Daryl weren't so stuck in that redneck role that he seemed to feel was his part to play.

Glenn sighed again, missing the fact that someone had sat down next to him. "You and Shane're getting pretty close," Daryl says, sounding... what? Gruff?

Glenn laughs bitterly. "Yeah, he's the main member of the 'Keep-Glenn-Alive' committee. Meaning that he has to follow me every time I go anywhere." He glanced towards the RV where Shane was keeping watch. "I can't get rid of him. I mean, they act like being kidnapped is some big deal, or something."

Daryl laughed softly, and Glenn can feel the smile on his face. "Well, you are the only one in camp who's been taken." He responded. Glenn nodded, keeping silent. But Daryl, apparently, was done talking. He knew it was silly, but he'd hoped that Daryl had sat down to _say_ something, that it meant something.

Glenn couldn't handle it anymore. "I mean, it's like they all think I'm some kind of kid!" He exploded, lowering his voice when Shane glanced back at them. "I'm not! I'm 23, and I can take care of myself, and it's ridiculous that they're so overprotective. I mean, it's not like Shane's my mom. He has no right to follow me everywhere and claim it's cause I can't take care of myself. And no one has a problem with it, you know, because they all think 'Oh Glenn, better watch out, we wouldn't want anything to happen to you' but it's not their place to worry, and I'm sick of it, cause I could do things, and-" He cut himself off and faced at Daryl, who looked slightly panicked at this outburst of _feelings._ He laughed wryly. "Sorry, man, it's just- no one else will talk about it."

The man looked at him. Just looked. And, damn it, it was moments like these, when the firelight was just right and Glenn's breath _hitched_ and Daryl had that expression on his face- "I didn't agree." Daryl interrupted.

Glenn blinked. "What?" He asked, disoriented.

Daryl rolled his eyes and looked away. "There was this big meeting, where Rick brought that up. Everyone said you needed someone with you, but I said you could take care of yourself." He shrugged, probably feeling Glenn's eyes on him. "They ignored me." He looked back at Glenn, but only quickly. "You're not a kid, though you look like it."

Glenn punched him lightly in the arm, smiling. "Thanks." He said. Another moment of silence, then Daryl stood up. Glenn wanted to ask why, wanted to pull Daryl back down and just have his mass next to him, but he contained himself.

"It's my turn to take watch." Daryl said after the awkward pause that followed. Glenn nodded. Daryl took a few steps, then hesitated. He said, "We'll go on a hunting trip tomorrow, so you can be alone, kay? I'll drop you off at a clearing and pick you back up when I return." He stalked off without waiting for a reply.

Glenn wanted to stay by the fire a little longer, but he saw Dale heading towards him, so he stood up and went to his tent. Daryl was something he couldn't figure out, for all of his years of college and dating and internet surfing.

But there was definite progress, somewhere, and that was all Glenn could hope for. At least for right now. He just had to wear Daryl down some more, make him as tired of hiding as Glenn was. Maybe they could run away together, act like lovesick teenagers who's parents disapproved, and just live like that. Except Glenn needed people, and he didn't think Daryl would like that very much either.

But for right now, it was OK. Things were OK.


End file.
